Embodiments herein generally relate to electronic indices for hardcopy items, and more particularly to a method that creates customized indices for such hardcopy items that are more useful than generic electronic indices.
As explained in U.S. Patent Publications 2005/0096938 and 2008/0109407 (the complete disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference) conventional reference books typically include an index, which is a detailed list of the information included in the book. An index thus increases the ease with which a user can locate information within a book. Although reference books often contain indices, the quality of the index is at the discretion of the publisher. Other types of books, such as fiction, typically do not contain indexes. In these cases, it is difficult for a reader to locate particular information or passages within the book.
Reading on-line in various forms has proliferated because of the Internet. Technologies such as electronic book readers have been introduced in the last few years. However, conventional e-books require a user to have access to a PC or CDROM, which limits the flexibility of the user to utilize an e-book in different locations where a PC or CDROM may not be available.
In addition, paper is a versatile technology that is flexible, durable, cheap, and ubiquitous. Words and images can be stored on it using pens, brushes, crayons, typewriters, or ink-jet printers. It is easy to share. Paper works well even if dropped, folded, left out in the sun/rain, etc.
Because paper hardcopy materials (hardbound books, paperback books, magazines, periodicals, etc.) are so useful and popular (but their indices are static and difficult to access) the embodiments herein create customized indices for such hardcopy items that can be used with any computerized portable devices ranging from cell phones, PDAs, PC, etc. The embodiments herein use variable indexing configurations ranging from the book on hand to user defined indices (including indices for magazines and other hardcopy publications). This custom indexing can modify the custom indices to include embedded objects (e.g., pictures) illustrating concepts and other graphics (including marketing items and advertisements) and to include hyperlinks to other documents and websites. The custom indices generated expand from a book to any printed material. For instance in the case of a magazine, the accompanying custom electronic index can include graphical advertising and hyperlinks to various documents and web sites.
Moreover, the embodiments herein expand to custom indices created by any user, or based on user feedback/input. With embodiments herein, any user can create a collaboration environment where the custom electronic indices can be refined, appended, or corrected creating more efficient and a more complete source of information, in addition to the ability to embed objects.
One method embodiment herein begins by creating a generic electronic index for a hardcopy printed item. The generic electronic index is based on the text within the hardcopy printed item. From this generic electronic index, the method creates a plurality of custom electronic indices. Such custom electronic indices can be based on user input and/or user feedback or can be created by marketing agencies, educational institutions, etc. Each of the custom electronic indices is a variant of the generic electronic index, and each of the custom electronic indices is adapted to a different target audience.
After the custom electronic indices are created, the method stores the custom electronic indices on a computerized server that is accessible to various users through either a wired or wireless network connection (local area network (LAN); wide area network (WAN); etc.); or is physically accessible by being available at a public location, such as a shopping mall or a library. Alternatively, the custom electronic indices can be delivered to users on portable computer-readable media, such as magnetic-based memories, optical-based memories, electronic memories, etc.
Irrespective of how the custom electronic indices are made available to the users, the method controls the access to the computerized server in a manner that identifies a user as being within an identified target audience. In other words, the user who desires to access or obtain a custom electronic index is identified so that the user can be placed in a specific target audience and so that type of computerize portable device they will be using to access to the custom electronic index can be identified.
Once the user is identified, the method can then output to the user a corresponding custom electronic index that corresponds to the identified target audience. In addition, the method will make the corresponding custom electronic index compatible with the user's computerized portable device.
The custom electronic indices of the embodiments herein are much more useful than the generic electronic index, which only includes information from the hardcopy printed item, because the custom electronic indices provide the user with more information than the generic electronic index provides. For example, the generic electronic indices can include user annotations and graphics that are not included in the generic electronic index. Similarly, the custom electronic indices can include advertisements and hyperlinks not included in the generic electronic index.
These and other features are described in, or are apparent from, the following detailed description.